BBC on Aaron Rodgers

Whilst I was trolling for Packer news this afternoon, I came upon this interesting article from BBC Sport. I spent a summer in London when I was sixteen and have been back to England several times since, and I’ve never come across anyone who uses “whilst.” This guy uses it twice. (I’m guessing he also says “shedjewel” for schedule and, one of Andy’s favorites, ne-go-see-ate for negotiate.)

Indeed, the fact that Rodgers has sought out the help of Steve Young (the QB who succeeded the great Joe Montana), indicates that he is fully aware of the difficulties he will face in taking over from such a revered figure.

Rodgers is aware of the fact that he is attempting to replace a man who started every game for Green Bay for 16 years with great success, and for this reason he understands why he is going to have to deal with the media and fans scrutinising every misplaced pass and every wrong decision that he makes.

I’d missed the news about Rodgers seeking out Steve Young. It appears to come from this Greg Bedard piece from back in March. Wrote Bedard:

Rodgers said he’s going to use the same mentality to help navigate the often treacherous road that comes with following a legend. That includes searching out former players like Steve Young and Jay Fiedler, who were “the guys” after Joe Montana and Dan Marino, respectively.

“It’s one my to-do things this off-season,” Rodgers said.

That strikes me as a good move. Young has impressed me as very thoughtful in his role as a commentator. And the famous video of him removing the imaginary monkey off of his back after winning the Super Bowl win suggests he might have some good advice for Rodgers.

Anyway, I find it interesting just how much attention is being paid this Rodgers-Favre storyline. That first game against Minnesota is shaping up to be important far beyond its significance to the Packers 2008 season.

2 Responses to “BBC on Aaron Rodgers”

I’m a Packers fan from England, I saw that article on the BBC website (in fact, a link to it was posted to it on our official NFL site, NFLUK.com).

The BBC is trying to maximize interest in the NFL after it won the rights to show the Superbowl live, and to show highlights of the ‘International Series’ such as the Dolphins vs. Giants game at Wembley last year.

The Packers first game on Monday Night Football, should be live on free-to-air TV in Britain. It’s a good time to be a Packers fan in the UK.